Last updated on September 11th, 2021 at 03:00 pm
Ambassador of China to South Africa, Lin Songitan, has confirmed that somd of those waiting to be repatriated are positive with coronavirus.
Songitan told media in Pretoria on Friday that South Africans awaiting repatriation were part of China’s quarantine programmes, and the group will be subjected to screenings before leaving China.
He said the Chinese government would provide the support needed to ensure they return home safely.
“I am proud to say there are no confirmed cases coming from China to South Africa. Why? We make sure that whoever comes to this country must be safe,” he said.
He said screenings were taking place from all airports in China to ensure that there were no slip ups.
To make sure of this, Songtian said everyone coming from China to South Africa now needed his approval directly.
On Thursday, South Africa confirmed its first case of the coronavirus.
A 38-year-old man from Hilton, KwaZulu-Natal, tested positive for Covid-19 and was among a group of 10, including his wife, who had recently returned from Italy.
Songtian said they were willing to offer support to South Africa and were already pleased with the way the Ministry of Health had been working closely with China.
“I’m confident that your government has a very professional programme to deal with this case,” he said.
He said good quarantine programmes were a necessity and he was confident of South Africa’s plans to stop the virus from spreading.
